The Next Global Shortage Could Be Olive Oil

In the new reality of life in the Coronavirus (COVID-19) era, we are getting used to the idea that certain things will be in short supply at the grocery store. Items like toilet paper, hand sanitizer, wipes, and water are all very hard to come by these days as more and more people stock up on these essentials.

But it looks like there may be a new item on the scarce list, but this anticipated shortage has nothing to do with the global pandemic.

According to the BBC, the olive oil industry is on the verge of a major crisis all due to a bacteria outbreak in Europe.

It's called xylella fastidiosa and its' been killing olive trees in Italy, Greece, and Spain since 2013. The devastation has been so bad in the region that experts say it could impact the industry for the next 50 years and cost well over $25 billion in losses.

In Italy alone, olive oil production is down 60 percent in the last seven years.

But it's not just olives in Europe that are being wiped out by this bacteria. Citrus in Brazil and grapes in California's wine country are also threatened.